Pipe cleaning device



Jan. 20, 1942. c KERN PIPE CLEANING DEVICE Filed March 19, 1940 INVENTOR fiarfeas' J ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 20, 1942 UNHTED STATES PATENT OFFICE PIPE CLEANING DEVICE Charles J. Kern, Bufialo, N. Y.

Application March 19, 1940, Serial No. 324,812

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a device for circulating a cleaning solution through a pipe, or other smoking accessory, to remove the tobacco tar and sediment which may have accumulated in the bowl and stem.

this connection it will be noted that at the inner limit of its range of movement the plunger 9 is located. at the open end of the barrel I so that One object is to provide a device of the character generally described which is adapted to accommodate pipes of various sizes and shapes and which may be applied to and removed from the pipes with facility.

A further object is a device wherein provision is made for compensating for any loss in effectiveness which may occur as a result of wearing of the parts.

A still further object is to provide a device which is simple and inexpensive in design and highly eifective in operation. i

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a device embodying the features of the invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional view through the device.

Figures 3 and 4 are transverse sections taken along lines 3-3 and 4-4, respectively, of Figure 2. a

Figure 5 is a modification illustrating the manner in which the device may be availed of to clean a cigarette holder.

The device, as illustrated, includes a pump 6,

the barrel 7 of which is adapted to provide a handle which may be grasped during use of the device. One end of the barrel is open, the other end being closed by a cap 8. A plunger, indicated at 9, is carried by a rod In which extends through a suitable opening formed in a cap 8 and- I3. A ring Id of neoprene or any other suit-.

able material is located within each of the elemehts 12, the outer face of the inner ring being the nut 18 is readily accessible. To adjust the pressure upon the rings I4 in the manner described, therefore, all that is necessary is to hold the nut l8 against turning and rotate the rod l0 in the direction and to the extent necessary,

the latter operation being readily efiected by properly manipulating the knob ll. I

A thin sheet-metal cap-piece I9 is carried by the open end of the'barrel 1. The cap-piece is in the form of an annular flange, being formed with a central opening 20 through which the said barrel extends. The cap-piece may, as illustrated, be formed with a hub 2| which may be soldered or otherwise secured to the barrel and is also formed with a skirt portion 22. The edge 23 of the skirt portion i inturned to secure a metal washer 24 and a relatively soft rubber cushion 25 within the cap-piece, the washer 24 being adapted to serve as a reinforcement for the cappiece while the rubber cushion 25 is adapted to act as a sealing ring.

A yoke 26 is carried by the cap-piece IS. The said yoke includes outwardly bowed, resilient arms 21, the free ends of which extend into the cap-piece and are soldered or otherwise secured to'the skirt portion 22. Preferably the connection between the arms 21 and the cap-piece is further strengthened by offsetting the former adjacent their terminal portions to providenotches 28 for accommodating the inturned edges of the skirt portion. The arms 27 are connected by a bridge 29 which is reinforced by a bar 30 and which carries a screw 3|. A padded head 32 is swiveled upon the inner end of the screw while a knob 33 is fixed to the outer end.

In the use of the device the bowl of a pipe to be cleaned is arranged'in the yoke 26 over the open end of the barrel 1 and the screw 3| is adjusted to clamp the bowl between the head 32 and the cushion 25. As the screw is tightened the rim of the bowl is embedded slightly in the washers l 5 and I6 in'response to the pressure excushion to thereby insure a' tight seal between the bowl and cap-piece. The stem of the pipe is then introduced into a receptacle (indicated at 34) containing the cleaning solution and the pump 6 operated first to draw a charge of cleaning solution into the pipe and then to discharge it into the receptacle, these operations being repeated until the pipe has been properly cleaned. To remove-the pipe from the device it is only necessary to clasp the latter in the palm of the hand and compress the resilient arms 21 of the rette holder.

yoke as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 2. The arms 21 are thereby elongated and the head 32 is drawn away from the pipe bowl sufficiently to enable it to be removed from the yoke. Upon removal of the bowl and release of the arms 21, the latter automatically assume their normal shape. It will thus be apparent that no adjustment of the screw 3| is required to enable removal of the pipe from the device. Nor for that matter is any adjustment required in securing the pipe in the device when once the screw has been properly adjusted in accordance with the size and shape of the particular pipe. In other words when the screw 3! has been once set and so long as the same pipe or type of pipe is to be cleaned it is only necessary to compress the arms 21 to provide sufiicient space between the head 32 and the cap-piece to permit insertion of the pipe bowl in the yoke. When the pipe bowl has been arranged in the proper position and the arms 21 are released, the latter will automatically, as they tend to return to their normal positions, cause the pipe bowl to be clamped firmly between the head 32 and cap-piece 19. The use of the adjustable screw in connection with the resilient arms has the advantage that the device will accommodate a wide variety of shapes and sizes of pipes and at the same time provides for facility in attaching and detaching the device regardless of such sizes and shapes. It will be appreciated, of course, that the attachment of the device to a pipe and its removal may be effected, if desired, solely by adjusting the screw 3|. In such case the use of arcuate resilient arms 2'! is still desirable as by conforming to the contour of the bowls of conventional pipes the device is rendered compact while the resiliency of the arms insures maintenance of the proper clamping pressure upon the pipe bowl when once the screw 3| has been tightened, it being understood that as the screw is tightened the arms 21 are straightened slightly so that they are placed under tension.

If desired the device may be availed of to clean the stem only of a pipe as well as cigar and ciga- To this end the device may also include a cylindrical shell 35 (Figure which is preferably of substantially the same height as a conventional pipe bowl and which has an open end which may be fitted over the open end of the barrel 1 and against the cushion 25, the said shell being adapted to be secured in the yoke 26 in the same manner as a pipe bowl. -A nipple 36 1. A cleaning device of the character described including a pump for drawing a cleansing fluid into a smoking accessory, said pump having a barrel and a plunger operable within the barrel, a cap-piece which is attached to one end of the barrel and which is formed with an opening, a sealing element which is carried by the cap-piece and which surrounds said opening, a U-shaped yoke having resilient, outwardly bowed arms, the terminals of which are permanently connected to the cap-piece to provide a closed resilient loop within which a bowl-shaped part is adapted to be arranged over said opening and means carried by said loop which acts against said bowl-shaped part to press the rim thereof against said sealing element, said loop being compressible to straighten said arms and thereby release said part.

2. A pipe cleaning device of the character described including a pump having a barrel, one

end of which is open, a plunger operable within the barrel, said plunger including an expansible packing and an adjustable element for expanding said packing and being movable to one limit of its working stroke to locate said element in an accessible position in the open end of said barrel so that it may be adjusted to regulate the degree of expansion of said packing, a cap-piece having an opening through which the open end of said barrel extends, a sealing element within said cap-piece which fits around said barrel, a U-shaped yoke having terminals connected to the cap-piece to provide a closed loop within which the bowl of a pipe may be accommodated so that it may be arranged over the open end of said barrel and an adjustable element carried by said yoke which is engageable with said bowl to press the rim thereof against said sealing element.

3. A pipe cleaning device of the character described including a pump having a barrel, one end of which is open, a plunger operable within the barrel, said plunger including an expansible packing and an adjustable element for expanding said packing and being movable to one limit of its working stroke to locate said element in an accessible position in the open end of said barrel so that it may be adjusted to regulate the degree of expansion of said packing, a thin sheet-metal cap-piece having an opening through which the open end of said barrel extends and being formed with top and side walls, an annular reinforcing ring within said cap-piece which fits around said barrel against said top wall, a sealing element within said cap-piece which fits around said barrel in front of and against said reinforcing element, the marginal edge of said side wall being flanged over said sealing element to hold the latter and said reinforcing element within said cappiece, a U-shaped yoke having terminals con-.

nected to the cap-piece to provide a closed loop within which the bowl of a pipe may be accommodated so that it may be arranged over the open end of said barrel and an adjustable element carried by said yoke which is engageable with said bowl to press the rim thereof against said sealing element.

' CHARLES J. KERN. 

